Rocky De La Fuente
| Rocky De La Fuente | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) | |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Roque De La Fuente Guerra October 10, 1954 San Diego, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (since 2017) |
| Other political affiliations |
Reform (2016) American Delta (2016) Democratic (2016–2017) |
| Spouse(s) | Katayoun Yazdani (divorced) |
| Children | 5 |
| Website |
www |
Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente (born October 10, 1954)[1] is an American businessman and perennial candidate.[2][3][4]
De La Fuente was the nominee of both the Reform Party and his self-created American Delta Party for President of the United States in the 2016 election. Also that year he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination in Florida's 2016 election for United States Senator and for the Democratic presidential nomination.
During the 2018 elections, De La Fuente filed as a candidate for U.S. Senate in nine state primaries, all of which he lost. He campaigned as an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump's immigration policies.[5]
Early life and education
De La Fuente was born on October 10, 1954 at Mercy Hospital in San Diego, California,[6] the son of Roque Antonio De La Fuente Alexander[7] and Bertha Guerra Yzaguirre. His parents raised him in Mexico (Mexico City, Tijuana, Baja California), and in the United States (San Diego, and Anaheim, California). He was educated by his parents and the Legionaries of Christ, the Marist Brothers, the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart, Daughters of the Holy Spirit and the Jesuits. As a youth, De La Fuente attended Saint Catherine's Military Academy in Anaheim, California and then earned a B.S. in physics and mathematics from the Instituto Patria National Autonomous University of Mexico, and studied accounting and business administration at Anahuac University near Mexico City.[6][8]
Career
Between 1976 and 1990, De La Fuente acquired 28 automobile franchises from Alfa Romeo, American Motors Corporation, Audi, Cadillac, Chrysler, Daihatsu, Dodge, GMC, Honda, and others.[6] He also opened three banks, assisted living facilities in Los Angeles and Lemon Grove and eleven currency exchange locations in the United States and Mexico.[9][10]
In 2004, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation issued an order barring De La Fuente from participating in an FDIC-insured institution. De La Fuente appealed and the 9th Circuit reversed half the order and advised the FDIC to reconsider its sentence, stating that "De La Fuente's use of [First International Bank] as his personal piggy bank was in shocking disregard of sound banking practices and the law to the detriment of depositors, shareholders, and the public. Nevertheless, we remand this matter to the Board for it to consider, in light of this disposition, whether this extraordinary sanction remains deserved."[8][11]
In November 2015, De La Fuente and the city of San Diego reached settlement in a decades-long legal dispute over land-use issues regarding a 312-acre area that De La Fuente is developing in Otay Mesa.[12]
De La Fuente owns businesses and properties in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, the United States, and Uruguay.[6]
Political campaigns
2016 presidential campaign
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De La Fuente ran a presidential campaign in the 2016 election. De La Fuente sought the Democratic Party's nomination during their presidential primaries. De La Fuente's campaign did not win a single primary or a single delegate to the 2016 Democratic National Convention.
De La Fuente founded the American Delta Party and ran as that party's nominee with his running mate Michael Steinberg and was nominated as the presidential candidate of the Reform Party which had ballot access in Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota and Mississippi.[13] De La Fuente ultimately received over 33,136 votes in the general election, earning him 0.02% of the total popular vote. He failed to win any electoral votes. In the popular vote De La Fuente placed eighth overall, behind the Democratic Party's Hillary Clinton, Republican Party's Donald Trump, Libertarian Party's Gary Johnson, Green Party's Jill Stein, independent Evan McMullin, Constitution Party's Darrell Castle, and Party for Socialism and Liberation's Gloria LaRiva.[14]
On May 9, 2017, De La Fuente and Stein dismissed their lawsuit against the State of Oklahoma. The focus of the lawsuit was the state's high requirement for petitions, but it was dismissed after Oklahoma eased their requirements.[15] In February 2018, De La Fuente would go on to win two more court cases slightly easing ballot access requirements in Virginia and Washington.[16][17]
2016 Senate campaign
On June 20, 2016, De La Fuente paid the $10,440 qualifying fee to run for the Democratic nomination of the 2016 Senate election in Florida to decide the Democratic nominee for the Senate seat occupied by Republican Marco Rubio. He competed with Patrick Murphy, Alan Grayson, Pam Keith, and Reginald Luster for the nomination.[18][19] Murphy won the nomination; De La Fuente came in fourth-place out of five candidates, receiving 60,606 votes (5.38% of the overall vote).
2017 New York City mayoral campaign
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De La Fuente ran for Mayor of New York City in the 2017 mayoral election. Upon announcing his intention to enter the race, De La Fuente claimed that private polling data shows him defeating Republican candidates Paul Massey and Michel Faulkner.[20]
De La Fuente's candidacy ran into problems with his lack of residency.[21]
On March 28, De La Fuente participated in a debate hosted by the Reform Party of New York State (which is not affiliated with the Reform Party of the United States of America) alongside five other mayoral contenders (Kevin Coenen, Mike Tolkin, independent Bo Dietl, Democratic challenger Sal Albanese and Republican Faulkner).[22]
De La Fuente said that homelessness and affordable housing was the central focuses of his campaign.[23]
During his campaign, De La Fuente received $600,000 in campaign loans from the New York City Campaign Finance Board. As of July 31, this meant that his campaign had received the second-greatest amount of any campaign in the 2017 mayoral race, behind only Paul Massey, who had received $1,610,000.[24]
After the suspension of both Michel Faulkner's and Paul Massey's campaigns, De La Fuente was the only remaining opponent to Nicole Malliotakis in the Republican Primary. However, two Malliotakis supporters, with the blessing of her campaign, filed objections to De La Fuente's ballot petition signatures. They argued that hundreds of De La Fuente's signatures were forged. On August 1, the New York City Board of Elections ruled against De La Fuente and in favor of the Malliotakis supporters (Bryan Jung and James Thompson), thus effectively ending De La Fuente's candidacy for the Republican nomination and leaving Malliotakis unopposed for the nomination.[25][26]
2018 Senate campaigns
On February 26, 2018 De La Fuente filed to run for the 2018 Senate election in California under the Republican Party to unseat incumbent Dianne Feinstein,[27] but failed in the June 5 primary. He came ninth place out of a field of 35, garnering 135,109 votes for 2% of the total.[28] In a primary system where only the top two make it to the final ballot, this ended his candidacy. On August 8, his candidacy for US Senator from Washington state[29] came to an end in the open primary.[30] He also lost primaries in Wyoming,[31] Hawaii, Minnesota, Vermont, Florida, Delaware, and Rhode Island. His promotional literature said that he chose to run in so many places "to prove just how ludicrous the election process has become,"[32] although some commentators express doubt about that explanation.[33]
The Washington Post noted that in both Hawaii and Vermont, he drew enough votes that he theoretically may have changed the election, as if those same votes had been redirected to the second place candidate instead, that candidate would have won.[34] Jim Camden, a columnist for The Columbian, wrote that "for this year's primaries [...] it’s clear the biggest loser was Rocky De La Fuente."[35]
2020 presidential campaign
De La Fuente has said that he intends to again seek the Democratic Party nomination in the 2020 presidential election.[36] He reiterated his plans to seek the presidential office in the wake of his 2016 election failures.[34]
Electoral history
Presidential elections
| 2016 Democratic presidential primaries[37] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % |
| Hillary Clinton | 16,917,853 | 55.23 |
| Bernie Sanders | 13,210,550 | 43.13 |
| Martin O'Malley | 110,423 | 0.36 |
| Uncommitted | 101,481 | 0.33 |
| Rocky De La Fuente | 67,468 | 0.22 |
| No Preference | 50,990 | 0.17 |
| scattering | 48,576 | 0.16 |
| Willie Wilson | 25,796 | 0.08 |
| Paul T. Farrell, Jr. | 21,694 | 0.07 |
| Keith Russell Judd | 20,305 | 0.07 |
| Michael Steinberg | 20,126 | 0.07 |
| Henry Hewes | 11,062 | 0.04 |
| John Wolfe Jr. | 7,369 | 0.02 |
| Star Locke | 5,202 | 0.02 |
| Steve Burke | 4,893 | 0.02 |
| Lawrence "Larry Joe" Cohen | 2,407 | 0.01 |
| Calvis L. Hawes | 2,017 | 0.01 |
| James Valentine | 1,726 | 0.01 |
| Uninstructed Delegation | 1,488 | 0.00 |
| Jon Adams | 486 | 0.00 |
| Vermin Supreme | 268 | 0.00 |
| Mark Stewart | 236 | 0.00 |
| David John Thistle | 226 | 0.00 |
| Graham Schwass | 143 | 0.00 |
| Lloyd Thomas Kelso | 46 | 0.00 |
| Mark Stewart Greenstein | 41 | 0.00 |
| Eric Elbot | 36 | 0.00 |
| William D. French | 29 | 0.00 |
| Edward T. O'Donnell, Jr. | 26 | 0.00 |
| David Formhals (write-in) | 25 | 0.00 |
| Robert Lovitt | 22 | 0.00 |
| William H. McGaughey, Jr. | 19 | 0.00 |
| Edward Sonnino | 17 | 0.00 |
| Steven Roy Lipscomb | 15 | 0.00 |
| Sam Sloan | 15 | 0.00 |
| Brock C. Hutton | 14 | 0.00 |
| Andrew Daniel "Andy" Basiago (write-in) | 13 | 0.00 |
| Raymond Michael Moroz | 8 | 0.00 |
| Richard Lyons Weil | 8 | 0.00 |
| Ignació León Nuñez (write-in) | 6 | 0.00 |
| Willie Felix Carter (write-in) | 3 | 0.00 |
| Brian James O'Neill, II (write-in) | 2 | 0.00 |
| Doug Terry (write-in) | 1 | 0.00 |
| Kevin Michael Moreau (write-in) | 0 | 0.00 |
| Total | 30,633,131 | 100.00 |
| United States presidential election, 2016[38][39] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Presidential candidate | Party | Popular vote | Electoral vote | Vice-presidential candidate | ||
| Count | Percentage | Projected | Actual | |||
| Donald Trump | Republican | 62,984,828 | 45.93 | 306 | 304 | Mike Pence |
| Hillary Clinton | Democratic | 65,853,514 | 48.02 | 232 | 227 | Tim Kaine |
| Gary Johnson | Libertarian | 4,489,235 | 3.27 | 0 | 0 | Bill Weld |
| Jill Stein | Green | 1,457,226 | 1.06% | 0 | 0 | Ajamu Baraka |
| Evan McMullin | Independent | 732,273 | 0.53% | 0 | 0 | Mindy Finn |
| Darrell Castle | Constitution | 203,091 | 0.15%' | 0 | 0 | Scott Bradley |
| Gloria La Riva | Socialism and Liberation | 74,405 | 0.05% | 0 | 0 | Eugene Puryear |
| Rocky De La Fuente | American Delta and Reform | 33,136 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 | Michael Steinberg |
| Other | 1,297,332 | 0.93 | 0 | 7 | Other | |
| Total | 137,125,040 | 100.00 | 538 | 538 | Total | |
U.S. Senate elections
| 2016 Florida Democratic Senate Primary election results[40] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % |
| Patrick Murphy | 665,985 | 58.9 |
| Alan Grayson | 199,929 | 17.7 |
| Pam Keith | 173,919 | 15.5 |
| Rocky De La Fuente | 60,810 | 5.4 |
| Reginald Luster | 29,138 | 2.6 |
| Total | 1,129,781 | 100.00 |
- 2018 Senate primaries
| State | Primary type | Date | Place | % | Winner(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | Nonpartisan blanket | June 5 | 9 out of 35 | 2.1 | Dianne Feinstein, Kevin de León |
| Washington[30] | Nonpartisan blanket | Aug 8 | 21 out of 29 | 0.34 | Maria Cantwell, Susan Hutchison |
| Hawaii[41] | Republican | Aug 11 | 5 out of 8 | 9.4 | Ron Curtis |
| Minnesota | Republican | Aug 14 | 4 out of 4 | 5.9 | Jim Newberger |
| Vermont | Republican | Aug 14 | 4 out of 4 | 2.9 | Brooke Paige |
| Wyoming[42] | Republican | Aug 21 | 5 out of 6 | 1.1 | John Barrasso |
| Florida[43] | Republican | Aug 28 | 2 out of 2 | 11.4 | Rick Scott |
| Delaware | Republican | Sep 6 | 3 out of 3 | 5.3 | Robert Arlett |
| Rhode Island | Republican | Sep 12 | 2 out of 2 | 12.3%[44] | Robert Flanders[45] |
References
- ↑ Bell, Diane (5 December 2015). "'Rocky' joins fight for President". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ↑ Alex Daugherty, Wasserman Schultz, other South Florida Democrats face scant primary opposition in 2018, McClatchy DC (June 4, 2018): "perennial candidate Rocky De La Fuente..."
- ↑ Nardolillo Drops Out, National Journal (July 2, 2018): "Perennial candidate Rocky de la Fuente..."
- ↑ Swisher, Skyler. "Rick Scott's Senate primary a mere formality before general election showdown". Retrieved 17 August 2018.
- ↑ Orlando Weekly, “We cannot continue to be a country that locks families and children in detention centers indefinitely..."
- 1 2 3 4 "Empresario con fuertes intereses en Punta del Este va por la presidencia de EEUU" (in Spanish). Maldonado Noticias. 11 October 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- ↑ Times Staff Writer (30 April 2002). "Roque De La Fuente, Business Park Innovator and Developer". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- 1 2 "De La Fuente Ii V. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation | Findlaw". Caselaw.findlaw.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
- ↑ https://www.rocky2016.com/es/roque
- ↑ Llenas, Bryan (2016-02-19). "Longshot presidential candidate Rocky de la Fuente won't say Donald Trump's name". Fox News Latino. Archived from the original on 2016-05-19. Retrieved 2016-06-01.
- ↑ "Reported Banking Law Cases". Fedbanklaw.com. 2012-06-01. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
- ↑ "San Diego settles decades-long de la Fuente land dispute". FOX5 San Diego. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ↑ "Reform Party Nominates Rocky De La Fuente for President". Ballot Access News. August 9, 2016.
- ↑ Leip, David (November 16, 2016). "2016 Presidential General Election Results". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Massachusetts. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
- ↑ "Rocky De La Fuente and Jill Stein Dismiss their Oklahoma Appeal, Given that Petition Requirement Has Been Eased". Ballot Access News.
- ↑ "Rocky De La Fuente Wins Virginia Ballot Access Lawsuit". Ballot Access News. January 10, 2018.
- ↑ "Rocky De La Fuente Wins Washington State Ballot Access Case". Ballot Access News. February 22, 2018.
- ↑ Bousquet, Steve (June 20, 2016). "It's a 'Rocky' start: Florida's candidate qualifying window opens". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
- ↑ Mark Harper (June 20, 2016). "Qualifying sees Democrat "Rocky" de la Fuente join Senate field". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
- ↑ Campanile, Carl (March 22, 2017). "Millionaire from California throwing hat into NYC mayoral race". nypost.com. New York Post. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
- ↑ Goodman, J. David (23 March 2017). "Hey, Bo. Nice to Meet You, Rocky. Welcome to the Mayor's Race". Retrieved 24 March 2017 – via NYTimes.com.
- ↑ Kochman, Ben (March 29, 2017). "Long-shot mayoral candidates battle over big issues, but united in trashing de Blasio". www.nydailynews.com. New York Daily News. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
- ↑ "Rocky de la Fuente Bets for Job Improvement and Affordable Housing to 'Make NYC Shine Again'" (Press release). Rocky de la Fuente office. July 25, 2017.
- ↑ "PolitiStat: The Numbers Behind New York City's 2017 Municipal Election".
- ↑ Durkin, Erin (August 1, 2017). "Republican mayoral hopeful Nicole Malliotakis running unopposed after Rocky de la Fuente gets the boot". www.nydailynews.com. New York Daily News. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- ↑ De La Hoz, Felipe (August 6, 2017). "Removal of Last Primary Opponent Could Cost Malliotakis". www.gothammgazette.com. Gotham Gazette. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- ↑ http://www.sdvote.com/content/dam/rov/en/election/2018June/Candidate_List.pdf
- ↑ https://vote.sos.ca.gov/returns/us-senate
- ↑ "2018 Candidates Who Have Filed". weiapplets.sos.wa.gov. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
- 1 2 "August 7, 2018 Primary Results - U.S. Senator". results.vote.wa.gov. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
- ↑ https://www.wyomingnews.com/news/local_news/incumbents-barrasso-cheney-advance-to-general-election/article_326e5c08-a5d4-11e8-9669-a3192567cc79.html
- ↑ Fuente, Roque De La (31 May 2018). "De La Fuente Runs for US Sen. in 5 States Simultaneously". Retrieved 17 August 2018.
- ↑ Garza, Marziel (June 2, 2018). "Hey California, don't vote for the guy who's running for U.S. Senate in five states". www.latimes.com. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
- 1 2 https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/politics/rocky-de-la-fuente/?utm_term=.9e3b32787725
- ↑ https://www.columbian.com/news/2018/sep/26/camden-recount-challenges-status-among-primary-concerns/
- ↑ Winger, Richard (January 10, 2017). "Rocky De La Fuente Tells Court that He Plans to Seek Democratic Party Nomination for President in 2020". Ballot Access News. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
- ↑ Berg-Andersson, Richard E. (2016). Tony Roza, ed. "Democratic Delegation 2016". thegreenpapers.com. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
- ↑ "Official 2016 Presidential General Election Results" (PDF). Federal Election Commission. December 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
- ↑ Leip, David (January 20, 2017). "2016 Presidential General Election Results". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Newton, Massachusetts. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
- ↑ "Florida Division of Elections Results Archive". State of Florida. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
- ↑ https://elections.hawaii.gov/wp-content/results/histatewide.pdf
- ↑ http://soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/Docs/2018/Results/Primary/2018_Statewide_Candidates_Summary.pdf
- ↑ "Florida Primary Election Results". Retrieved 2018-08-29.
- ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/12/us/elections/results-rhode-island-primary-elections.html
- ↑ http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/406396-sheldon-whitehouse-coasts-to-victory-in-rhode-island-senate-primary
External links
- Rocky campaign website
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Columnist Dave Barry on meeting De La Fuente
- "De La Fuente: The man challenging Clinton, Sanders". WOOD-TV. 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-03-05.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Andre Barnett |
Reform nominee for President of the United States 2016 |
Most recent |